Lauderhill Real Estate Transactions Attorney

A signed purchase contract on a Lauderhill property is a binding commitment, and the weeks between signature and closing are when most deals either hold together or fall apart. The Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team handles real estate transactions and real estate litigation for buyers, sellers, investors, landlords, and co-owners in Lauderhill and across Broward County, as well as Palm Beach County and the wider South Florida market.

If you are searching for a Lauderhill real estate transactions attorney, you are probably at one of two points: you are about to sign something and want it read by a litigator who knows how these documents behave when a deal goes wrong, or you are already in a dispute over a contract that was signed months ago. The firm works both sides of that line, drafting and negotiating the agreement and, when necessary, enforcing it in court.

The decisions that matter most come early. What the contract says about default, deposits, inspection and financing contingencies, and closing dates will control your leverage later. Fixing a poorly drafted clause before signing costs very little. Fixing it after a failed closing can cost the deal.

Why Clients Choose the Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team for Real Estate Transactions

The Andrew M. Andrew M. Schwartz, the firm’s founder, has spent 37 years in litigation, was admitted to The Florida Bar in 1989, and has practiced in Florida ever since. He holds an undergraduate degree from Emory University and a law degree from the University of Miami. Alongside him is Sundeep Nath, Senior Counsel, a Northwestern-trained litigator with years of experience in business and real estate cases in both state and federal courts.

The firm serves owners, investors, and families throughout Broward and Palm Beach Counties, including clients from New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut who hold property or business interests in South Florida. The practice covers commercial and residential real estate transactions and litigation: failed closings, purchase and sale contract disputes, title problems, partition actions, and landlord and tenant matters.

A transactional lawyer who has never tried a contract case reads an agreement differently than a litigator does. Contract enforcement has been at the center of Mr. Schwartz’s practice for his entire career, and he reviews every clause with the question of how a judge would read it if the deal collapsed.

One recent result shows what that looks like. After a five-day bench trial, a Broward County circuit judge issued a 32-page final judgment in May 2024 awarding the firm’s client specific performance of a commercial real estate contract. In other words, the court ordered the deal completed rather than leaving the buyer with only a damages claim.

The firm practices as a true legal team, so everyone working on your file knows it. There is a strict 24 hour return call policy, and the attorneys are experienced in mediation and arbitration as well as courtroom litigation. The aim is the resolution that fits your goals and budget, not a longer case for its own sake.

Real Estate Matters We Handle for Lauderhill Property Owners and Buyers

• Purchase and Sale Contract Review: Residential and commercial agreements for property in Lauderhill and surrounding Broward communities, with attention to contingencies, deposit terms, default remedies, and closing deadlines before anything is signed.
• Failed Closings and Contract Disputes: A seller who refuses to close, a buyer who walks away, or a financing or inspection dispute that turns into a deposit fight. These cases often turn on the exact wording of the agreement and the history between the parties.
• Specific Performance Claims: When a property is unique, money may not make a buyer whole, and a court can be asked to order the sale completed. These claims carry a short filing window, discussed below.
• Title Disputes and Quiet Title Actions: Competing ownership claims, clouds on title, and defective conveyances. A quiet title action asks the court to cancel the competing claim and confirm who owns the property.
• Partition Actions: Co-owners who cannot agree on what to do with shared property, including former business partners, siblings who inherited a home, unmarried couples, and investors who want out. The court can divide the property or order it sold.
• Landlord and Tenant Matters: Notices, terminations, nonpayment, and lease enforcement for residential and commercial landlords and tenants.
• Commercial Lease and Loan Document Disputes: Leases, loan documents, and construction contracts tied to real property, where the written terms drive the outcome.
• Injunctions Protecting Property: Emergency and temporary relief to stop a transfer, encumbrance, or interference with real property while a dispute is pending.

What to Do Before Signing, and What to Do When a Deal Goes Wrong

Before signing, have the full contract reviewed, not just the summary page. Pay particular attention to the default clause, the deposit provisions, and every contingency with a deadline attached. A missed inspection or financing deadline can convert a protected buyer into a defaulting one without anyone noticing.

If a deal is already failing, preserve everything. Keep the signed contract and all amendments, every email and text with the other side, the agent’s communications, deposit receipts, lender correspondence, and inspection reports. Do not send an angry message that characterizes your own conduct. Do not stop performing your side of the contract without advice, because walking away can hand the other party a defense.

Deadlines are shorter than most people expect. A claim on a written contract generally has a five-year limitations period, while a claim on an oral or implied contract has four years. A suit to rescind a contract has four years. Specific performance is the outlier: an action seeking it carries a one-year period. If you want the court to order a sale completed, waiting is dangerous. Fraud claims run four years from discovery, with an outer limit of twelve years.

Ownership disputes involve their own rules. A quiet title plaintiff generally must trace the chain of title back at least seven years, and the complaint can be filed in any county where part of the land sits. Adverse possession in Florida requires seven years of continuous possession under a claim of title, and a claimant must file a return with a full legal description. Separately, a suit to recover real property is barred unless the plaintiff or a predecessor was in possession within seven years before filing.

For Lauderhill properties, cases above the county court ceiling are heard by the Circuit Court of the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit in and for Broward County, and the Broward courthouses in Fort Lauderdale, Plantation, Hollywood, and Deerfield Beach all handle civil matters. Larger business and real estate disputes may qualify for the circuit’s complex business division, which handles large business and construction litigation. Federal matters in this region go to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, which sits in Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach. Properties or co-owners in Palm Beach County are handled in the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit.

Call early. A short conversation before a deadline passes is worth far more than a long one after.

Partition, Co-Ownership, and Inherited Property Disputes

Co-ownership is one of the most common sources of real estate conflict in South Florida. A family inherits a house, a couple buys together and separates, or business partners buy a building and the partnership ends. One owner wants to sell, the other wants to keep or refuses to pay a share of the costs, and no one can force a decision without the court.

Partition actions are filed in circuit court. The complaint must describe the land, name the owners and where they live, and state what share each holds. If the court orders partition, it appoints three commissioners to evaluate whether the property can be divided fairly. When it cannot, the court may order a public sale and divide the proceeds by ownership share. A sale on credit is possible for good cause, but at least one-third of the price must be paid down unless everyone consents otherwise.

Inherited property gets additional protection. Florida’s Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act applies to partition actions filed on or after July 1, 2020. Property can qualify as heirs property when it is held in a tenancy in common, there is no binding agreement governing partition, at least one cotenant acquired title from a relative, and another listed condition applies, such as relatives holding twenty percent or more of the interests. In those cases, the court follows a different process designed to give family members a chance to avoid a forced sale, and partition in kind is not ordered unless the commissioners have weighed the statutory factors and found that a sale would otherwise prejudice the cotenants as a group.

When the co-owners are also business partners, the property dispute and the business dispute often have to be solved together. The firm’s experience with business divorce, LLC member disputes, and deadlocked ownership lets it address both at once.

Frequently Asked Questions About Lauderhill Real Estate Transactions

Do I need an attorney to buy or sell property in Lauderhill?

Florida does not require one for every transaction, but the contract you sign is enforceable as written. Having an attorney review it before signing is far cheaper than litigating a defective clause later, particularly for investment property, commercial deals, or any purchase with unusual terms.

What does a real estate transactions attorney actually do?

The work includes reviewing and negotiating purchase agreements, advising on contingencies and deposit terms, addressing title issues before closing, and stepping in when a deal breaks down. Because this firm also litigates, it can enforce the contract if the other side fails to perform.

What happens to my deposit if the closing falls through?

That depends on the contract’s default and contingency provisions and on who caused the failure. Disputes over who is entitled to the deposit are common, and the answer usually turns on the exact wording and the timing of notices.

Can a court force a seller to complete the sale?

Yes, in appropriate cases. Specific performance is an equitable remedy that asks the court to order the sale completed. It was the result the firm obtained for a client in a commercial real estate contract after a five-day bench trial in Broward County. The limitations period for these actions is one year, so timing matters.

How long do I have to sue over a broken real estate contract?

For a written contract, five years. For an oral or implied contract, four years. Rescission has four years. Specific performance has one year. Fraud runs four years from discovery, capped at twelve. These periods are not interchangeable, and the claim you choose affects the deadline.

What is a quiet title action, and when is it needed?

It is a suit asking the court to cancel a competing claim or cloud on title and confirm who owns the property. It is used when a conveyance is defective, competing claimants exist, or someone holds record evidence of title that should not be there. The plaintiff generally must trace title back at least seven years.

Can I force the sale of a house I co-own with someone else?

Generally, yes, through a partition action. If the property cannot fairly be divided, the court can order it sold and divide the proceeds by ownership share. Inherited property held by relatives may be subject to the heirs property rules, which add protections against a forced sale.

Is a landlord allowed to terminate a lease without giving the tenant a chance to pay?

For unpaid rent, a Florida landlord must first deliver a written demand, and the tenant has three days, excluding weekends and court-observed holidays, to pay or leave. For other violations that can be cured, the notice gives seven days to fix the problem. Some violations, such as intentional damage, allow a seven-day termination notice with no chance to cure.

If a landlord accepts partial rent, does that cancel the eviction?

No. Accepting partial rent does not waive the right to terminate or sue. The landlord must, however, handle it properly: issue a receipt stating the amount, date, and balance due, deposit the partial payment into the court registry on filing, or serve a new three-day notice reflecting the revised amount.

I live in New York or New Jersey and own property in Broward. Can the firm handle my case?

Yes. The firm regularly represents out of state owners, handles the local court appearances, and keeps clients informed so they do not have to travel for every hearing. It also works with referring attorneys from outside Florida.

Does a real estate dispute always end up in court?

No. Many are resolved through negotiation, mediation, or arbitration. The firm’s attorneys are experienced in each and will pursue whichever path is most likely to reach your goals efficiently, while preparing the case as though it may be tried.

Serving Real Estate Clients From Lauderhill Across Broward and Palm Beach Counties

The firm’s work for Lauderhill clients extends through the surrounding Broward County communities, including Lauderdale Lakes, Plantation, Sunrise, Tamarac, North Lauderdale, Margate, Coconut Creek, Coral Springs, Pompano Beach, Fort Lauderdale, Oakland Park, Davie, Hollywood, and Deerfield Beach. We also represent property owners, investors, landlords, and families throughout the rest of Broward County, along with Palm Beach County clients in Boca Raton, Delray Beach, Boynton Beach, West Palm Beach, and neighboring communities.

Clients come from across South Florida and from the tri-state area of New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. Whether the property is a single-family home, a multi-unit building, a commercial space, or land held with business partners or relatives, the firm handles the transaction and any dispute that follows.

Speak With a Lauderhill Real Estate Attorney About Your Transaction or Dispute

If you are weighing a purchase, preparing to sell, or already facing a failed closing or ownership dispute, a conversation with a Lauderhill real estate attorney at the Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team can clarify where you stand and which deadlines apply. The firm answers calls promptly and returns every message within 24 hours. Call to schedule a consultation and talk through your contract, your property, and your options.